2026 FRENCH ELITE CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Saturday, June 27th – Thursday, July 2nd
- Piscine Raymond Sommet, Saint-Etienne, France
- LCM (50m)
- French Selection Criteria for European Championships
- Meet Central
- Event Schedule
- Psych Sheets
- Live Results
- SwimSwam Meet Preview
- SwimSwam Recaps
It is the 5th final session of the 2026 French Elite Championships!
As we take one step closer to the final day of these championships (tomorrow) the schedule for this final session, we again have six events:
- Men’s 1500 Freestyle
- Women’s 200 Butterfly
- Men’s 100 Backstroke
- Women’s 200 IM
- Men’s 200 Butterfly
- Women’s 50 Freestyle
Tonight will begin with the fastest heat of the men’s 1500 free, where top-seeded entrant Damien Joly, one of three pre-meet sub-15-minute swimmers, in 14:51.06, will look to maintain his top-seeded status over Sacha Velly (14:53.62) and Emile Vincent (14:59.62).
Through the morning heats, Lilou Ressencourt claimed the top time in the women’s 200 fly in 2:11.64. She was one of just two swimmers under 2:14 in the prelims, along with Tabatha Avetand in 2:13.41. Adelaide Meuter rounds out the top three in 2:14.56 through the early prelims.
The men’s 100 backstroke prelims saw each of the top seven swimmers touch under 55 seconds. Leading the charge is Jules Andre in 54.11, followed closely by French record holder Yohann Ndoye-Brouard in 54.13. The next five qualifiers all touched just over half a second within one another. Just outside of the top two was Clement Secchi in 54.47, about three-tenths faster than the mass group behind.
Cyrielle Duhamel dominated the 200 IM this morning, finishing nearly two and a half seconds better than the rest of the prelims field in 2:16.05 to earn top-seeded honors for the finals. Trailing her were a pair of sub-2:20 swimmers in Zoe Carols-Broc (2:18.43) and Louann Soulard (2:19.43)
Our penultimate event unfortunately will not see the reigning Olympic Champion Leon Marchand after pulling out of the rest of the meet due to injury, but in his place will be what is shaping up to be possibly the tightest mens race of the day in the men’s 200 butterfly, as the top eight from this prelims are separated by 1.01 seconds, including the top two, Sandro Henras-Marouf and Fares Benzidoun earning the top two times in 2:00.84 and 2:00.88, respectively.
Capping off the action this morning will be Beryl Gastaldello, Mary-Ambre Moluh, and Albane Cachot leading a sure-to-be exciting women’s 50 freestyle. Gastaldello leads the way out of the early swims with the lone sub-25-second swim in 24.91, though Moluh, who has broken a pair of national records over the last two days, sits right on her tail in 25.07.
Men’s 1500 Free – Fastest Heat
- World Record: 14:30.67 – Bobby Finke, USA (2024)
- World Junior Record: 14:41.22 – Kuzey Tuncelli, TUR (2024)
- French Record: 14:44.66 – David Aubry (2024)
- French European Championships Qualifying Time: 15:01.89
Top 3 Finishers:
- GOLD- Sacha Velly – 14:51.23
- SILVER- Emile Vincent – 15:03.21
- BRONZE- Damien Joly – 15:05.06
The pre-meet top three were the ones to come out on top of the final, though it would be Sacha Velly taking the top time by nearly 12 full seconds in 14:51.23. Velly managed to hold sub 1:00 100 splits throughout the entire race, never creeping over that barrier, and finishing as the lone swimmer in the event under the qualifying standard.
Emile Vincent used a major final 100 to get himself into runner-up position, closing in 57.06 to earn silver, though just off of the qualifying time for the European Championships.
The oldest competitor in the field, Damien Joly, was not all that contested in his race for the 3rd place spot on the podium, despite losing his 2nd place position at the 1400 mark, Joly hung in for 3rd in 15:05.06, touching more than eight seconds faster than the rest of the field.
Women’s 200 Butterfly – Final
- World Record: 2:01.81 – Liu Zige, CHN (2009)
- World Junior Record: 2:03.03- Summer McIntosh, CAN (2024)
- French Record: 2:05.09 – Aurore Mongel (2009)
- French European Championships Qualifying Time: 2:10.59
Top 3 Finishers:
- GOLD- Adelaide Meuter – 2:11.60
- SILVER- Lilou Ressencourt – 2:11.80
- BRONZE- Tabatha Avetand – 2:12.66
It was Adelaide Meuter moving up from 3rd after the prelims to take the win in the women’s 200 fly, outtouching Ressencourt by two tenths of a second in 2:11.60.
Meuter turned about a second behind Ressencourt at the opening 100, with Ressencourt surging out of the gates in 1:01.69 to Meuter’s 1:02.55. But the 2nd half of the race tells more of the story for the two former NCAA swimmers , as Meuter (Houston) outsplit Ressencourt (CAL) on each of the last two 50s by at least half a second, and ultimately was able to just get her hands on the wall first.
Tabatha Avetand also made a big move upward, touching just over a second off of the win in 2:12.66, about two seconds faster the the rest of the final.
Men’s 100 Backstroke – Final
- World Record: 51.60 – Thomas Ceccon, ITA (2022)
- World Junior Record: 52.08 – Miron Lifintsev, RUS (2024)
- French Record: 51.92 – Yohan Ndoye-Brouard (2025)
- French European Championships Qualifying Time: 53.95
Top 3 Finishers:
- GOLD-
- SILVER-
- BRONZE-
IMPORTANT UPDATE, According to the Live Results, the Men’s 100 Back has been moved and will now be contested tomorrow, July 2nd.
Women’s 200 IM – Final
- World Record: 2:05.70 – Summer McIntosh, CAN (2025)
- World Junior Record: 2:06.56- Summer McIntosh, CAN (2024)
- French Record: 2:09.37 – Camille Muffat (2009)
- French European Championships Qualifying Time: 2:12.28
Top 3 Finishers:
- GOLD- Cyrielle Duhamel – 2:12.72
- SILVER- Louann Soulard – 2:15.14
- BRONZE- Anastasia Urbaniak – 2:16.24
The women’s 200 IM was never particularly close, as it was Cyrielle Duhamel touching more than two seconds faster than the rest of the field to claim the win in the event, just missing the European Championships qualifying time in 2:12.72.
Duhamel led from start to finish, opening in 28.43, and maintaining that momentum through the first 100, turning in 1:02.06. Her back half is where she separated herself, splitting 38.73/31.93 to close out the win ahead of Louann Soulard in 2:15.14.
Rounding out the top three was Anastasia Urbaniak in 2:16.24 who had to battle with Zoe Carlos-Broc (2:16.24) for that final podium spot.
Men’s 200 Butterfly – Final
- World Record: 1:50.34 – Kristof Milak, HUN (2022)
- World Junior Record: 1:53.79- Kristof Milak, HUN (2017)
- French Record: 1:51.21 – Leon Marchand (2024)
- French European Championships Qualifying Time: 1:56.51
Top 3 Finishers:
- GOLD- Sandro Henras-Marouf – 1:56.99
- SILVER- Mateo Gregoire-Charmasson – 2:00.39
- BRONZE- Angel Exposito – 2:00.99
It was a dominant showing from Sandro Henras-Marouf to win the Marchand-less 200 fly at these championships. Claiming the top spot on the podium with the only time under the 2:00 barrier in 1:56.99, just missing that European Championships standard of 1:56.51.
Henras-Marouf held 30.25 and lower for each of the first three 50s before slipping a bit on the final stretch of the race, splitting 31.63. Henras-Marouf was also the only championship finalist that split sub :30 in the 2nd 50 of the 200 fly in 29.29.
If you were under 2:01, you made the podium, as Mateo Gregoire-Charmasson and Angel Exposito each were the only other swimmers to have dipped under that barrier in 2:00.39 and 2:00.99, respectively.
Women’s 50 Freestyle – Final
- World Record: 23.55 – Gretchen Walsh, USA (2026)`
- World Junior Record: 24.17 – Claire Curzan, USA (2021)
- French Record: 24.34 – Mélanie Henique (2020)
- French European Championships Qualifying Time: 24.80
Top 3 Finishers:
- GOLD- Mary-Ambre Moluh – 24.68
- SILVER- Analia Pigree – 24.73
- BRONZE- Marie Wattel – 24.79
Continuing her red-hot performances at these championships, Mary-Ambre Moluh closed out the session with yet another win, this time coming in a stroke other than backstroke with the 50 freestyle, touching just five hundredths ahead of the field in 24.68.
Moluh, who is coming off of two French Records in each of the last two days of competition, was still a good three tenths off of another one here, but was able to get her hand on the wall first, as one of four women to crack 25, whereas in prelims, only one swimmer managed to do that. That one swimmer, Beryl Gastaldello, swam the exact same time of 24.91, but finished 4th, just off the podium.
Rounding out the podium was Analia Pigree and Marie Wattel, separated by six hundredths in 24.73 and 24.79, respectively.
Outside of velly a lot of slow races. Interesting the backstroke was moved
The 100 back A-Final will be reswum tomorrow, the starting signal had a malfunction and they made the swimmers wait way too long before it functioned (3s). Some swimmers still swam the whole 100m, but in the end it did not count